Ather

Akira

The Akira are a proud collection of nomadic humans who roam the Takohwa Plains of the Northern Continent hunting the megafauna who share the land with them. They live in small hunter gatherer societies, and pride themselves on their independence and martial prowess.

Culture and Governance
Unlike the Arulans, the Akira subscribe to the belief that no man can own either the land or a fellow man. The dozens of different tribes that make up the Akira nation generally acknowledge one another’s rights to different hunting grounds, but do not consider any one group to have exclusive ownership of any one piece of land.

Tribes are usually family based, however intertribal marriage is common, and seen as a good way to strengthen alliances between tribes. Tribes are also linked through warrior societies, which are loose collections of hunter/warriors founded around different principles. Members from any tribe may join a warrior society, and that society often acts as the provider and protector of several tribes in a region, ensuring that hungry families get the food they need and that internal or external tribal threats are swiftly and decisively dealt with.

Demographics
It is estimated by Arulanese scholars that between 30,000 and 40,000 Akira roam the grassy plains, though the largest individual tribe recorded numbered barely 1,600. Few men or women make it past age 50, as the hardships of nomadic life are not kind to the elderly.

Language
While dialects vary greatly among tribes, most speakers of Akira can understand one another with relative ease. Tribes who live on the northern plains close to Arulan may pepper their speech with phrases or words borrowed from their northern neighbors. The Akira tongue has many words for warrior, numerous names and descriptions for animals, but lacks more sophisticated terminology (there is no Akira word for “Windmill”, for example). Scholars have described the tongue of these nomads as among the most beautiful and poetic of human tongues.

Spirituality
The Akira do not worship any particular gods, though they acknowledge the role in creation played by the Harkiron Gods. Instead, they venerate the Sinn Féin nature spirits who share their lands, often calling upon them for wisdom or aid. In exchange, the Akira often protect sacred stretches of hills or forest on behalf of the Sinn Féin, creating a mutual partnership between the two peoples.